Maldon and Burnham Standard: Council officials' wages come under fire

THE soaring number of high-earning council officials has come under fire from spending watchdogs.

There has been a giant increase in the number of middle managers on £50,000 or more in local authorities.

The TaxPayers' Alliance claims the average council now splashes out more than £4 million on high-wage staff.

But Essex County Council spends almost ten times that, putting it among the top five wage-busting councils in the UK.

It says a staggering 586 people at County Hall are now paid more than £50,000 - compared with just 37 ten years ago.

Their combined wage bill is a whopping £36 million - costing every single person in the county £26 each.

The Tax-Payers' Alliance says nationally 12,600 council officers now earn above £60,000 - as much as an MP.

Chief executive Matthew Elliott said: "With council tax doubling in the past decade, it's extremely disappointing that town halls have chosen to hire a new class of middle managers, many of whom are being paid more than MPs.

"Local authorities should study these findings carefully to see where savings can be made."

Colchester Council has just 12 officers on more than £50,000 - up from seven ten years ago. The number of top-paid workers at Tendring has more than trebled from six to 19.

Braintree's top-earners have doubled from seven to 14.

But Essex County Council has almost 600 staff on £50,000-plus, putting it fourth in league tables, behind Birmingham, Kent and Herts.

Neighbouring Suffolk only has 85 high-earners at a cost of just £5.5 million to council tax-payers.

But County Hall bosses last night defended Essex's record.

Council leader Lord Hanningfield said: ""As one of the largest councils in England we employ in excess of 52,000 staff, of which only 0.01 per cent are on salaries of £50,000 or more.

"In the last few years we have made a huge amount of savings, and we are determined to carry on with this success and make a further £200m in the next three years while continuing to provide good quality services.

"We are able to achieve this due to the high calibre of our senior staff who, in part, are attracted to the authority due to its competitive remuneration."

There are currently eight £50,000-plus jobs up for grabs at the county council. The average admin assistant earns about £15,000.

The Tax Payers' Alliance was set up as a grassroots campaign for lower taxes.